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Wednesday, October 4, 2017

ONGC gets go ahead for Rs 456-cr drilling project in Assam

INDIA's biggest oil and gas producer state-owned ONGC has received green clearance for the Rs 456-crore exploratory drilling project in Sivasagar district of Assam, a government document showed. The Maharatna PSU's proposal is to drill 10... wells in the petroleum lease areas — Rudrasagar, Geleki, Lakwa, Namti, Mekypore, Santak Nazira — of Sivasagar district.
About 1.5-2.25 hectares of land are required for each well and the estimated project cost is Rs 456.20 crore. In a letter issued to the ONGC, the Union Environment Ministry has informed that the government has given final environment clearance to the proposed exploratory project in Assam.
The clearance is subject to compliance of certain specific and general conditions, it said.
In its proposal, ONGC has said that exploratory drilling of 10 wells is highly prospective where oil and gas have been discovered and produced from a large stratigraphic column.
The proposed project will help establish hydrocarbons in the block, help cut the country’s oil import bill and reduce imbalance in oil production and consumption, it said.
The commercial development will also lead to investment in Assam, bringing oil and gas revenues both to the state and the central government, it added.
The exploration giant ONGC produces around 70 per cent of the country’s crude oil and around 60 per cent of natural gas. It is involved in exploring hydrocarbons in 26 sedimentary basins of India and owns and operates over 11,000 kilometres of pipelines in the country.
ONGC's international subsidiary, ONGC Videsh, has projects in 15 countries.
Meanwhile, Shashi Shanker has taken over as the Chairman and Managing Director of ONGC.
He succeeded Dinesh K Sarraf, who retired from service on September 30. "Shanker is an industry veteran with over 30 years of experience in diverse exploration and production activities," a company statement said. A Petroleum Engineer from Indian School of Mines (ISM), Dhanbad, he also holds an MBA degree with specialisation in Finance.